Palestinian students say beaten at checkpoint

Two Palestinian students claimed that they were severely beaten on Saturday by Border Guard officers manning a checkpoint situated between the West Bank city of Jericho and Jerusalem.

According to Alla and Iad Mazlum, who are relatives and residents of Ramallah, the incident occurred as they were making their way to Abu Dis University. They said they were detained at the checkpoint along with other Palestinians.

Alla's father told Ynet that after identifying themselves, his son and Iad were taken into a room, where the officers ordered them to strip and "beat them for no reason."

The father, who is known to the IDF's Coordination and Liaison Administration, said "why should two students on their way to the university encounter such unwarranted brutality?"

The Palestinians filed a complaint with the Beit-El police and also informed Palestinian security services of the incident.

The Border Guard said the officers offered a different version of the events, but added that the incident would be investigated.